Regulatory Reform Committee

1. Committee reports overstatement of savings from Museum of London Regulatory Reform Order

On 11 May the Committee reported that the draft Regulatory Reform (Museum of London) (Location of Premises) Order should be approved. The Order would remove a restriction which presently prevents the Museum of London operating outside the confines of the City of London. The practical effect of the removal of the restriction would be to allow the Museum of London to merge with and to operate the Museum in Docklands.

Since the Committee made its report, the Minister for the Arts has informed the Committee of a substantial overstatement of the likely savings which will result from the merger. This Special Report draws the House's attention to the overstatement. The Committee's view is that this error does not affect the validity of its recent unanimous recommendation that the draft Order be approved.

The Committee's full report will be published as its Second Special Report of the current Session, at 2.00 pm on Thursday 1 July. It will be available from all Stationery Office outlets (Ref HC 818).

2. Committee reports on Government Proposal for Regulatory Reform (Trading Stamps) Order 2004

The Government laid this proposal for a regulatory reform order before Parliament on 29 April 2004 under the procedure laid down by the Regulatory Reform Act 2001.

The proposed Order would repeal the Trading Stamps Act 1964. It would also repeal section 1(2)(c) of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982, so that the 1982 Act would in future apply in situations where goods are exchanged for trading stamps. The proposal would also give effect to various other minor consequential amendments and revocations.

The Government's intention in promoting this proposal is to remove the provisions of the 1964 Act which regulate the operation of trading stamp schemes and to provide that all customer loyalty schemes which involve the exchange of tokens for goods are governed by the single legislative framework in the 1982 Act.

The Committee has considered this proposal with the criteria laid down in the Committee's Standing Order, and has concluded that the proposal should be amended before a draft order is laid before the House.

The Committee's full report will be published as its Ninth Report of the current Session, at 2.00 pm on Monday 5 July. It will be available from all Stationery Office outlets (Ref HC 817).

The text of both reports will also be available on the Committee's website from 3.30 pm on the day of publication. (www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_committees/regulatory_reform_committee.cfm)